Payment In Full
by Tea8chSee
Summary: Saving the country from a power-hungry homunculi, as a family, entitles you and the family to some quality rewards. It's equivalency. The rest of the people work to replace the shattered country.  Devoted author. May have long words, dry humor & violence.
1. Prologue

Prologue ~ Explanation

Alchemy: The science dealing with objective manipulation, on the molecular level. It involves 3 parts. Identification, Deconstruction & Reconstruction. Alphonse & Edward Elric have discovered a way of doing those steps out of order.

After The Day of Promise, the actions the Elric brothers made more than atoned for the taboo sin of attempting human transmutation. Therefore the being that is/is beyond The Gate was in debt to the Elrics & Hoenheim.

Post P-Day, the realm of Homuncululi has been vastly diminished, mainly because of the epic amount of the supply of Human Soul energy (Philosopher's Stone) that was used for the form father took. Also, because Father, Wrath, Envy, Sloth, Lust & Pride were destroyed, Amestris has become much safer without them.

Mustang's crew was the clear leader of the successful rebellion that overthrew the Bradley administration. Virtually everyone thought that Mustang would be the new Fürher Of Amestris and in a way he was but, not through the same way of government as before. Other than Mustang: Hawkeye, Havoc, Breda and both Armstrong twins are in seats of power. Edward was deemed too young, (this angered him immensely) but he still was widely regarded as a saving grace in the eyes of the country so it's pretty likely he could be high up at some point.

I am writing this as I go. There will be war, love, marriage, death, children, and long hard times ahead for the characters in here.

(All of this ^ will play out through the plot-line early on, so this is just some useful info.)  
>All that being said - This all begins basically right before everyone sort of, comes back to life during The Promised Day. Just forget about the ending that was really in Brotherhoodthe manga. this is fan fiction...

I promise as an author, I will do my absolute best to listen to critique and improve where I fail, but creative control is ultimately mine.

*The stage is set, my story begins*


	2. A Divine IOU

(The original concept, artwork, plotline, end-of-book funnies, animus, games, figurines, soundtracks/music, & thoughts all belong to Hiromu Arakawa. Although, I do own all the books, all the anime, all the artwork, and all the games, on my computer. Awesome.)

[001] - The Change From Paying the Cashier of All Life (A Divine I.O.U.).

Alphonse's *eyes* snapped open, there was vast darkness surrounding him. He stood up from the sedative position that he was in, from the ground that is questionable at this point, after the events that took place.  
>"Wow I feel short suddenly.." Al wondered aloud to himself. "Hello!" Al waited for a response.<br>One never came.  
>Racing through Al's thoughts, were the memories he had leading to this moment.<br>Beginning to try and figure out what is going on exactly, Al sat on the flat surface, devoid of any texture, beneath him.  
>Once he sat something really heavy came full circle in his mind: He has his body back! He could feel his hands and bare ass on the floor, so he must have his body back... Or at least, "OH NO!" Al practically screamed. "My soul was brought back to this body! Which means, my armor body is either destroyed, or wasn't capable of carrying my soul any longer." He reasoned aloud.<br>"I must do something about this!" He immediately hopped up and attempted to create a torch out of the ground, assuming it was mostly a carbon, using alchemy.  
>He thought hard of the transmutation matrix in his head, and triggered the reaction, with his energy flow.<br>There was no reaction.  
>Instead, there was a blinding light and a chilling, massive low boom so loud, the sound waves shook his whole body to the core.<br>He had closed his eyes as quick as they would close, due to the sudden brightness. He couldn't manage to overcome the brightness for some time. However, when he did he immediately looked at his own emaciated human body, enthralled that his soul and body are together , he realized that he's surrounded by white. He stood once again, looking around, his eyes fell upon a huge monolithic stone floating inches off the ground. Al felt an ominous sort of knowing about this thing. He stared on towards it questioningly for some time. From somewhere behind him, a soft high-pitched boy's voice that echoed as if it resonated within something empty and big. "Alphonse Elric." Said the voice.

Al spun around to face a suit of metal armor. "Who are you?" said Al, even though he had a feeling who it really was. "I am you, but we must not be the same. This is our body outside the gate currently." said the armor. Al's brain worked the fastest since he woke up, analyzing the possibilities of this situation. Finally, Al said, "Wait, so who's soul are you? How do you know all this?" Metal Al replied, "Your soul from the other side of the gate. And that is irrelevant for now." "How are you helping yourself, by not telling me anything?" Al said, and he felt he had raised a good point. "Look, all you must know for now is-" He was cut short by a deep, macabre creaking. The kind of creak that would come from ten-thousand doors, hinges un-oiled for years, opened with force. Al cringed at the sound. Just as he turned around, he saw the floating monolith divided horizontally down the center, open very slowly like a set of double doors. The metal Alphonse said, "Something's happening!" Then, light of unparalleled brightness shone through the crack in the massive doors. Even in the bright white space, the two different versions of the same person were both equally blinded by the light emitted by the very ominous gate they both knew all about. However, neither of them knew what was happening now. "Alphonse Elric..." A woman's voice, this time very faint. "What?" "Yes?" they both answered over each other, with the same voice. "You have done well. Now you have earned a great many things." The unknown woman's voice spoke to them again, this time with more volume and inflection. "Who are you?" Metal Al questioned the voice. "Hey! I thought you knew what was going on!" Al said, now tensing in case it was a hostility, even though he was in no condition to be fighting anyone. Especially anyone that could blind him. "I am all energy and all time. I am everything, and I am singular. Your political group calls me God. Before they knew of me as The Gate, but that is many centuries before your time" The voice said, changing pitch and tone from that of a woman's voice, to a deep almost Ishvalan-sounding male voice, then to a child's voice throughout the whole time it introduced itself. "What is really going on here?" Metal Al asked. "Your bloodline is responsible for the defeat of my ultimate enemy, the one known to you as Father. You Elrics are also responsible for saving your whole species. There is much to reward for." The comforting woman's voice said. "What about the grave sin I commited with my brother? Speaking of my brother, where is he?" ~


	3. Full Circle

Pre-AN: The main character is Alphonse, in that, in times where there are multiple characters involved, Al will be the point of view (most of the time..(providing Al's actually in that scene.)). But otherwise, the point of view is pretty jumpy in general. Also, things may move a tad slow for a bit. Don't worry though, this has a long plot so far... (I feel like the point of view may get confusing at times this chapter, so I'm gonna point out things in confusing bits.)

(The original concept, artwork, plotline, end-of-book funnies, animus, games, figurines, soundtracks/music, & thoughts all belong to Hiromu Arakawa. Although, I do own all the books, all the anime, all the artwork, and all the games, on my computer. Sick-nasty.)

The Pieces of the Real Puzzle, Come Together. (Full Circle)

Alive?

Dead..  
>Must be dead, its dark.. Father forced our soul gates to open to fuel his alchemy...<br>The whole country is gone.. Winry.. Al.. Oh god, everyone!

Ed screamed in despair.

I can't do anything about it. "Shit!" Ed sat up and rubbed his arm.. "WOAH!" He had both arms.. Legs too. How this happened was unimportant for the moment, but the fact was he had fingers and toes and feeling.  
>"Wow..." Ed said post jumping around.<p>

Umm. I'm naked.. How?

Ed began to transmute a pair of shorts. "What the hell am I standing on?" Ed questioned void. "Hmm."

Let's just look for silicone or carbon.. I _am_ trying not to damage the goods.  
>Transmute. Circle. Matrix. Silicone. Pants.<p>

Then Ed clapped focusing his mental concentration on the clap, closing his eyes.

Extreme bright light poured through his eyelids. He covered his eyes.  
>Peering through his fingers he saw The Gate. But..<p>

Ed gasped. He immediately noticed that the huge stone doors were totally smooth and free of the engravings depicting the Amestrian line of decent.

"Edward Elric?"

It sounded more like a question to him be he answered quickly nonetheless. "Yeah? Hello?" (3rd person view of naked Ed.)

Too bright can't look.. Sounds familiar.. (1st person, thoughts of naked Ed.)

"He didn't say I would be naked" Ed stood there dressed as he was when father activated the circle and opened the gate, looking at his own naked body free of any scars or marks, no assembly required. He was very cheerful over this. (3rd person Ed.)

Finally looking, Ed saw what he remembers as himself during the events taking place before all this strangeness. (3rd omniscient.)

Who is that if I know I'm me? (1st person naked Ed.(Done with that part.))

"Who are you really..? Envy?" Ed asked with a tinge of fear in his voice, hesitant for a fight, considering what happened when he used alchemy.

He laughed. "No, I don't have much time to explain. Basically we're the same soul but on different sides of-

A creaking that split his mind into splinters rocked the two genetic, or otherwise, twins to the core. There was very intense light that was too much for either of them to take, they shielded themselves appropriately.

"You have done many meaningful things but, this by far, means the most in the balance of the world. I commend you." A huge, loud voice that sounded like many voices all saying the same thing at once but with an immense variety.

"Huh?" Ed said. "What?" The naked Ed said.

"You aren't aware of whats going to happen next-" Said this voice. At this point neither of them could overcome the sheer light."-but, I will tell you what happens, you shall reap great rewards."

"Are you God, Everything, and all that stuff?" Ed asked in a serious manner.

"That is humorous. I created Humor, I should know." The voice laughed as it was saying this. "But, I digress. there is much to be said."

"Your souls are both here and it is no accident." Said the voice. ~

* * *

><p>"Right, Alphonse. Down to business." Said the voice. "Your souls are both here, and it is no accident."<p>

Alphonse opened his mouth to speak, but the voice spoke first. "Your brother is having the same talk with me right now." said the soothing female voice through the significant light that shone through the open gate.

That must be the Creator of The Truth. It's incredible that I'm here.. But Ed too? At the same time, no less! That seems far-fetched. Hmm, lets see though, what happens here.

"You shall be granted special abilities that humans other than you can never gain. But you shall be given a choice for which one you want. Choose wisely." Said the voice in a very pleasing, teaching sort of tone. ~


End file.
